Matzah Day by Charlotte Offsay with illustrations by Jason Kirschner; New York: Holiday House; © 2025; ISBN 8760823-458257; 26 pages; $18.99.
SAN DIEGO – The first night Seder of Passover comes this year on Saturday, April 12. To introduce children who have never tasted unleavened bread before, Charlotte Offsay has authored a book of rhymes about matzah.
For the most part, the rhymes extol matzah, but there are two warnings about the crumbling nature of the cracker-like symbols of the Jewish holiday. They are likely to leave crumbs at the dinner table and it is not wise to eat them in bed.
Otherwise, the book offers such suggestions as, “Eat a whole one at the seder/ Keep the rest to savor later” and “Like it salty, plain, or sweet? No wrong way to eat this treat.”
At the back of the book is non-rhyming information about matzah, including sections on “What is matzah?”; “What is Passover and why is it celebrated?: and “Why is matzah eaten on Pesach/ Passover?”
There also are recipes for making “matzah pizza” and “matzah buttercrunch” as well as how to make matzah itself from flour, salt, and water.
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Donald H. Harrison is publisher and editor of San Diego Jewish World.